The goal of this proposal is to investigate the neurochemical basis of various developmental disorders associated with pathologies of central catecholamine neurons in an animal model. These investigations will involve the perinatal exposure of the rat to ethanol and other pharmacological agents that effect the maturation of the catecholamine neurons in the central nervous system. Preliminary results indicate that the specific activities of the catecholamine enzymes in the brains of pups suckling on dams fed an ethanolic diet differ significantly from controls. In the proposed study fetal suckling rat will be exposed to ethanol "in-" and "ex-utero" via transplacental passage and lactation during selected ontogenic periods of central catecholamine neurons. The concentration of catecholamines and their precursors, enzymes involved in their synthesis and degradation as well as the catecholamine turnover and synaptosomal uptake of catecholamines will be measured in the brains of the pups. The reversibility of the injury will be determined at various developmental stages. The maturational and biochemical changes induced will be correlated with patterns of growth and behavior. These investigations should establish the vulnerable periods for the developing central catecholamine neurons and provide a basis for the long-term evaluation of such a perinatal injury.